Apple CEO Speaks Out on Offshore Cash, Made in USA Mac

Apple CEO Tim Cook is headed to Washington, D.C. next week to testify about the company's offshore cash hoard, a rare public appearance which is being preceded by an interview that offers a glimpse of what's to come.Politico published an interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook on Thursday, only days before the executive heads to the nation's capital to discuss more than $100 billion the company has sitting in reserve overseas.

Cook's testimony on U.S. tax reform before a panel of Senators puts Apple on the offensive over recent accusations that it should be bringing more of its offshore profits home, where it would be subject to a 35 percent corporate tax.

“I can tell you unequivocally Apple does not funnel its domestic profits overseas," Cook stated defensively. "We don't do that. We pay taxes on all the products we sell in the U.S., and we pay every dollar that we owe. And so I'd like to be really clear on that."

The mere fact that Cook is headed to Washington, D.C. at all is remarkable -- his predecessor, late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, avoided government completely for the better part of his tenure.

"We don't have a large presence in Washington, as you probably know, but we care deeply about public policy and believe creative policy can be a huge catalyst for a better society and a stronger economy," Cook said.

Ironically, Apple is already one of the nation's largest taxpayers, having paid out almost $6 billion for its 2012 fiscal year -- an amount that Cupertino expects to increase by another $1 billion this year.

While Cook didn't get into the details, he also elaborated on plans to invest $100 million into manufacturing domestically, which will begin with "a new version of a current Mac product" later this year.

“We’re going very deep in this project,” Cook said, with Arizona, Texas, Illinois, Florida and Kentucky earmarked for component manufacturing or final assembly of the mystery product.